Admittedly, these four Long Island lads got a little more mature in their approach over the years. They gained confidence, their sound became clearer, more complex, stepping away from the jam-like confusion of their first two records, but still…there’s a certain irony to the name For Serious This Time. Sure, the structures are more elaborate, but serious? They don’t really do serious. No more random ‘stop&starts’ though: now the drums are beating continuously, instead throwing in casual breakdowns, syncopation and rhythmic shifts; the guitar is drifting around carelessly, tickling the tracks with a free-flowing melody, only sketching hints of a hook here and there; at times two voices clash, interrupt one another. That’s ‘Weird Life’ for you, their latest EP to date (released in 2011), a skippy indie-rock six-track record, less erratic than the last, with still something of a punk attitude. Only just getting off the roads, the band ended their summer tour at a fun friendly BYOB bash in East Northport last night- now that’s over, time for some new sounds. For serious this time, yeah? – Tracy Mamoun

Black Marble have taken us into some intensely abstract places in the past (especially in their previous incarnation as Team Robespierre), but with latest single ‘A Great Divide,’ they’ve decided to ratchet things down a notch. Perhaps it’s just the heat talking, but the band has seemed to relax a bit. This is a good thing, because they otherwise have a knack for keeping the tension tight. The drums and bass have decided to lay back… giving duo Chris Stewart and Ty Kube a chance to pour their guts out all over their washy sea of nord and korgs without interruption. Don’t worry though, if anything the dance party has exploded even more sharply over the material.

Their debut LP ‘A Different Arrangement’ (to be released October 9) is expected to continue this trend away from doom and gloom. We shall see. Check Black Marble out this Saturday at Big Snow with Honeydrum and Black Jeans. – Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)

Photo Source: Nude Pop

Nude Pop played Capitol Hill Block Party this past weekend and received rave reviews. In tandem with the performance was the release of their latest song called "Lurker."

The opening riff is curious and ticklish, weaving within and without the drums and bass. The vocals blend melliflously into the fold, behaving moreso like another instrument than just someone’s voice high in the mix. 

Nude Pop composes an artful tapestry over the course of five minutes; they are adept at crafting hyponotic melodies without making them feel dull and repetitious. Be forewarned, listening to the track may leave you in a pensive and chipper trance.

Although the band hails from Spokane, WA, they continue to pick up shows, fans, and press in Seattle. Earlier this year they won the Experience Music Project’s Sound Off! 2012 competition which earns them a slot at this year’s Bumbershoot music festival.

Working on a debut EP, setting up more performances for the summer – 2012 is proving to be a vital time for Nude Pop. Stream "Lurker" below to wake up in their dream. They also have several demo tracks available on their bandcamp.

– Cameron LaFlam

If you haven’t been to one of the shows in the Sonic Spectrum Tribute Series at recordBar, this is one to experience. Since debuting the series last January, host Robert Moore has selected local bands and musicians to play songs of eclectic artists like David Bowie, Talking Heads, The Pretenders, Neil Diamond, The Clash, and most recently, Minutemen.

It’s summer, and that means it’s time to get off your ass and do some traveling or – if you can’t afford it – watch videos about it. Mon Khmer’s latest video for new single ‘Dreamers’ will fly you over to Meghalaya in North East India, where you’ll be led around by a wise little girl over sharp cliffs and challenging terrain.

Brooklyn by way of Boston, founding member Hammarsing Kharhmar challenged Brooklyn cinematographer Russell Cramer to represent his roots for the piece, making way for an ambitious visual start to their new recordings. But it’s the addition of lead singer Emil Bovbjerg and producer Jeremy Loucas that’s really defined the band’s new direction. Mon Khmer’s latest EP ‘Dreamers’ contains some of their most decisive tracks yet. Filled with hypnotic synths and jetstream vocals, the record will pass right through your ears to some nostalgic root you usually come across only in Murakami novels. But then, this band is all about nostalgia. Named for a remote language spoken by Kharhmar in his youth, the band similarly captures hidden worlds in their music and throws them onto a global dance template.

Travel to Glasslands on August 7 when they play with Alt-J. – Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)

Elana Belle Carroll isn’t one to mince words. Not that she doesn’t have plenty to say, just don’t expect her to hold your hand during the conversation. Equal parts music writer, film music composer and perfomer, Carroll describes her latest project Vernous as ‘electrolash.’ For this group, she takes her no nonsense approach to a rattlesnake hybrid of pounding dance beats and bone-chilling lyrics.

‘We are Children’ for instance, begins and ends it’s 6 minute chant with haunting foreboding (‘Don’t wait… listen…’), fellow artist Melanie Snyder whispers into the song. But it’s not all venom. At other moments, Vernous lets loose. Three song EP ‘Vernous I’ ends with the more playful ‘DTF,’ a song with a wild progression of beachside guitars and 808 snare hits. Not for the faint of heart, Vernous will wrap itself around you and like with any exciting woman you’ve ever met, you’ll thank her for the time you two spent together.

Put her groove under your feet when Vernous plays new Bushwick Venue The Paper Box on August 10. – Mike Levine – This band submitted their music for review here.

The Tumbling Bones are purveyors of traditional American music who value, above all, grit – and playing live. The Brooklyn based twenty-somethings who make up the trio have been callousing their hands and pushing their vocal chords for years as they’ve toured, recorded, and breathed folk music. Their raw take on old Americana has taken them across the world (they are currently in Ireland) and they don’t seem to miss any opportunity to play live, gigging with impressive regularity. Peter Winne’s deep baritone lead, Jake Hoffman’s cutting tenor, and Sam McDougle’s fiddle and percussion are faithful to old styles, but the Tumbling Bones can’t help injecting modern sensibilities into their music, however subtly. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here). The Deli’s NYC Open Blog is powered by The Music Building.

This week, we turn the tables on the creator of On The Beat, Sergio Moreno. Find out about his various projects (including The Hillary Watts Riot and Alacartoona), as well as other things he’s involved with, and see how he feels being in the hot seat for once. Catch the beat at the link here!

On The Beat is typically brought to you by Sergio Moreno, but has been overtaken this week by drummer and The Deli – Kansas City editor-in-chief Michelle Bacon. This weekly interview features some of the many talented drummers in the area.

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NYC’s We Are The Woods (not to be confused with Brooklyn’s band Woods) will release a new album this October. Their previous release was a Deli Record of the Month in 2011. Entitled “Whales & Roses,” the new album features the band’s signature vocal harmonies courtesy of singers Jessie Murphy and Marcia Webb. The vocal duo is accompanied by the band’s ornate instrumentation, which includes, among others, acoustic guitars, strings, flutes and tubas. We Are The Woods will hit NYC this fall at the Rockwood Music Hall September 5th and at the Living Room September 30th. Check out the title track to the upcoming album streaming below. – Read a recent Deli interview with the band here.

Mat Shoare and his band, The Empty Spaces, owe a lot to Buddy Holly, Duane Eddy and The Ventures. On Party Line, the band’s second EP, though, Shoare delivers a little more rockabilly and Replacements with his pop (especially on the brief standout, "Jackie Says"). You gotta give it up to the band, however, for embracing all the slap delay, Ampex tape and Stratocasters of old, without sounding merely like a tribute band. Recording live, the band captures the energy of its live shows. And like any good EP or 45, Party Line gives fans an snapshot of the band, unadorned with studio chicanery.

The EP starts fittingly with the title track, “Party Line,” a good indication of where the band’s headed in the next 20 minutes. The strongest track, "The 1960s Divorce Rate Blues," benefits most from the live recording when it collapses from a rocking 4/4 into a doo-wop waltz. The closer, "B-52’s," pushes the rockabilly envelope farthest. With the rhythm section carrying the song, Shoare has fun with a spring reverb tail louder than his twangy guitar.

With occasional mistakes that seem intentionally left in, these recordings certainly feel live. They could also benefit from overdubbing. Some background vocals or an occasional second guitar part give the listener something to return to. That minor complaint aside, one thing’s for certain, listening to Party Line aptly prepares anyone for an Empty Spaces concert. In the age bands filling out their live sound with auxiliary band members and laptops, this can certainly be refreshing.

Listen to tracks from The Empty Spaces’ first EP Low Noise at their page on Golden Sound Records.

The Empty Spaces will be kicking off a short Midwestern tour to celebrate the release of Party Line on Thursday night at The Brick with Soft Reeds and The Caves. From there, they’ll be hitting St. Joseph (Cafe Acoustic on Friday), Omaha, Des Moines, Minneapolis, Chicago, St. Louis, and Lawrence (The Jackpot on August 4).

–Jonathon H. Smith

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As the clock ticks away, there’s a fragility to every existence that Brooklyn’s experimental quintet In One Wind has captured with an admirable dramatic intensity. Drifting from the aesthetic innovations of their debut towards something more conceptual, they developed for their first EP Lean six narratives built upon an unstable structure, where each voice, with a warm candor, struggles to find its place, and pace itself to the rhythm of the song. Some find a note, a glimpse of a hook on which to rest, if only for a second; some find a partner, and as a solo turns to duet, gain a strength that can settle a tempo, or turn acoustic melancholia into distorted noise-rock; only the poor Drunkard finds nothing, and until the end of his sad tale sways uncertain as a subtle cymbal going crescendo suggests the weight of his time rushing by. Despite nuances of folk, jazz and rock, Lean defines an expressionist world of its own, where the textures and arrangements hold as much narrative power as the words themselves, if not more.  – Tracy Mamoun

The evolution of Vivian Girls’ founding member Cassie Ramone’s other project known as The Babies takes another step forward with the release of the 7" "Moonlight Mile," presented as an appetizer for the band’s upcoming new album. Started as a very DIY psych-pop band, the group in the last year has morphed its sound towards a new, more defined direction, which finds inspiration in the American Roots Rock of the 80s filtered through Frank Black’s odd chord progressions and relentlessly tense pop anthems.

Lead vocals handled this time by writing partner (and Woods’ bassist) Kevin Morby, a cautionary tale is laid out about the perils traveling down an uncertain road. Cassie contributes significantly with the hook-laden background vocals, which at times almost sounds like a horn section. A piercing lead guitar riff emerges, echoing the train metaphor that culminates the song’s lyrical statement. The track can be streamed now and will be released as the first single by the Woodsist label on August 14. The full album titled "Our House On The Hill" will be released in the fall. The 7" release will feature an exclusive B-side and is limited to 1,000 copies. The band will be playing multiple shows in Brooklyn, beginning with Public Assembly on 7/25, Union Pool on 7/28, Secret Project Robot on 7/31, McCarren Park on 8/15 and Union Pool again that same night. – Dave Cromwell